1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to swings or the like, especially battery-operated swings for infants.
2. Prior Art
Swings for children have been known from time immemorial, starting with ordinary hand-pushed swings suspended from trees or other appropriate brackets. There have been non-electric swings patented in the United States as well as a number of AC motor-operated swings or vibrating devices such as shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,311,935; 3,146,985; 2,916,745; 1,505,117; 2,564,547; and 2,609,031. U.S. Pat. No. 3,146,985 is typical of such pendular type play swings; which, since it requires an AC motor, is a relatively expensive assembly. As it operates off the household AC line, it involves higher voltages than are advisable where children are concerned. Furthermore, being AC driven, it requires line cords which limits its portability and presents hazards to children running or walking in the vicinity. Moreover, the use of an AC motor sufficient to drive the apparatus adds a considerable amount of weight to the item increasing its shipping cost and making it inconvenient to handle. The use of an AC motor does not lend itself well to sales of the item in knock-down form where the item is sold for ultimate assembly in the home by a handy consumer. The Beegle U.S. Pat. No. 2,590,920 which does not show a swing, but a health bed, has a driving assembly in which an AC motor is caused to circle around a horizontal disc. The weight of the motor about a moment arm causes the health bed involved to tilt first on one side and then on the other. Since an AC motor is used which rotates about the disc, it is necessary for Beegle to employ slip rings.
There has been a real need for children's or infants' swings of the portable type which are battery-operated yet which do not constitute an undue drain on the batteries or on the customer's pocketbook.
Recent U.S. Pat. No. 4,150,820 shows a battery-operated child's swing. It concedes that battery-operated swings have not been widely used for reasons previously mentioned, i.e., expensive AC motors, undue drain on battery current, etc. That patent also points out that some of those prior art swings could not tolerate the sudden stopping of the swing seat or the pushing of the seat in a direction contrary to its motor-driven direction because of the possibility of stalling of the swings or burning out of their motors. U.S. Pat. No. 4,150,820 shows the use of two nickel-cadmium rechargeable batteries from which the Bochmann apparatus shown can derive enough current to run 11/2 or 2 hours. While 11/2-2 hours is often adequate, it is considerably less desirable than a battery-operated swing which could operate at 10-12 times longer without recharging. Furthermore, the apparatus shown in that patent is relatively complicated and probably more expensive in its structure than it need be.
Accordingly, it is among the objects of the present invention to provide a battery-operated swing for children, or the like, which:
1. Has an appreciably lower current drain than known prior art swings.
2. Can operate for a considerably longer time on a single charge of rechargeable batteries than those presently known.
3. Is considerably more simple in construction than comparable prior art ones.
4. Is less expensive in terms of material and labor costs than those presently known.
5. Can utilize a very inexpensive small motor to drive the entire apparatus.
6. Is not disturbed by interruptions of the swing by stopping.
7. Does not require electric wires.
8. Is extremely portable.
9. Is extremely quiet in operation.
10. Can operate for a considerably longer time on conventional unrechargeable batteries than those presently known.
11. Has a smoother swinging action than many prior art swings.
12. Does not require any special linkage or clutch mechanisms to disengage the driving means from the swing itself should there be any stopping of the swing by any external force.